This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Shad Hossain, a lead quality assurance engineer at Meta based in New York. His identity and employment have been verified by Business Insider. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
I was never someone who had big dreams or hopes for the future. I felt lost during high school, and I didn’t know where to go in life.
I struggled in school and barely passed my classes. I faced learning difficulties, but I was only diagnosed with dyslexia much later in life, so my parents or teachers couldn’t pick up on what was happening.
I was not getting the grades my parents expected of me, which lowered my confidence. I felt worthless; many of my friends had passions and dreams for their careers, whereas I had nothing.
Still, I got into college, but I left because I wasn’t doing well and started working at a Levi’s store. I was a really quiet person when I joined, but working there helped me get out of my shell and build soft skills.
Working in retail built up my confidence
I learned how to speak to people confidently because I had to interact with customers constantly. At the time, a friend introduced me to an introductory coding class, where I learned basic coding languages. After taking that class, I had a lightbulb moment; I decided I wanted to learn more, went back to school, and joined a coding boot camp.
After graduating from college, I worked at several big brand companies, including HBO, CBS, Apple, Nike, the National Basketball Association, and Hulu. Then, I set my sights on working for Meta.
Despite all the experience I had built up at those companies, getting into Meta was extremely tough. I had four previous attempts to get in before landing this in the past five years. I interviewed with Meta before for a similar role, which gave me an understanding of what they are looking for — someone who’s very proactive and has a certain amount of experience.
I didn’t take rejection to heart
I kept interviewing with different companies and speaking to recruiters on a regular basis so I could improve and build confidence.
I’m a persistent person, and not being afraid of rejection has helped me grow and progress in life. With every no, I kept thinking, ‘I didn’t do great today, but there’s still tomorrow,’ and kept going.
I was motivated by wanting to support my family. I was born in Bangladesh and came to New York when I was three years old. For the first 10 years there, I grew up in a one-bedroom apartment with my three sisters and parents. It was tough. But after graduating from college, landing some jobs with a good salary helped me give my family a better life. That has pushed me a lot.
For the role I now have at Meta, they were looking for somebody interested in augmented reality and AI. I was already a big fan of Meta and regularly used their Oculus headset, so during my interview, I told them I was a customer and leaned into how much I knew about the product and my passion for it. I also researched beforehand and developed a solid understanding of the company and its products, which I think helped tremendously.
I first tried to get into Meta in 2021 and every year after that until I finally landed the job at the beginning of this year. In the past, I didn’t make it past the second stage of the hiring process twice, which is the coding stage, as my solution wasn’t correct.
By the fourth time I applied, I passed the coding interview, but I failed the stage where there was an interview with a group of engineers. I didn’t execute the answer correctly. But, on my fifth attempt, I knew what I needed to do during the coding and group interview and what questions I would need to be prepared to answer.
Having previous experience interviewing at Meta helped me land the job. By then, I also knew how to format my résumé to attract recruiters’ attention.
Recruiters look for impact on your résumé
One thing I think recruiters are looking for is the impact you’ve had at a company. So, for example, what projects did you work on, what challenges did you solve, how were you able to execute, and what the impact of that was.
Many people are applying for jobs with just their résumé, but the best thing you can do is do cold outreaches to recruiters. You can contact them via LinkedIn and don’t need a premium account to do this. You can just send a short message when you connect with them.
Recruiters want to see that people have the confidence and initiative to reach out and express interest in a role. Brushing up on my technical skills also helped me to land a job at Meta. The more you prepare, the better your chances are.
I also had a great friend who was my accountability buddy and tested me on questions that I wrote the answers to on index cards.
Doing mock interviews can build your confidence
Mock interviews can give you the opportunity to be best prepared for what questions could come up.
If you find yourself in a similar position of rejection, know that with hard work, persistence, and determination, you will eventually get there.
When I found out I had been accepted into Meta, it felt great; it was such a proud moment. I’m extremely grateful to Meta for giving me a chance like this. Knowing the hard work I put in over the past 10 years paid off was a great feeling.
I want to use my experience to help others pursue tech jobs through career coaching. There are many talented people out there who just need a little push and guidance.
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